Just A Piece Of Your Puzzle
by GilmoreGirlAddict
Summary: [AU] Sokka was born an Earth Bender, and was adopted by the Water Tribe when they found him abandoned as a baby. Now some Earth Benders are back, looking for him... To fulfill a prophecy.
1. I

**Just A Piece Of Your Puzzle**

**Summary: **AU Sokka was born an Earth Bender, and was adopted by the Water Tribe when they found him abandoned as a baby. Now some Earth Benders are back, looking for him... To fulfill a prophecy.

A sigh escaped his slightly parted lips as he glanced over at his sister and the Avatar. He, Sokka, was the odd one. Aang was the Avatar and could, so far, bend Air, Water, and was now working on Earth. Katara was a Water Bender, even if she was just in her beginning steps. And what was he? The outsider. The so-called warrior that was raised by Water Benders but couldn't bend Water to save his life. And what good would that do to the small little group?

The other two considered Sokka to be smart. Sure, at times he did admit to himself that he could be smart, but that was never good enough for him. Aang could be smart. Katara could be smart. They all seemed to 'take turns' saving the day, but it was usually Aang's or Katara's turns. Why? Because they were not only smart but they could _fight. _Sure, he had a boomerang that he could use occasionally, but he was seen more as the scared, stubborn, sometimes stupid, weak one of the group that wanted things to go _his _way. But that wasn't all he was.

He hated this, having to hide who he really was. He hated having to make them feel like they really knew him, but having them be so clueless to who he _really _was. Maybe had they never met the Avatar, had they never met Aang, Katara could know. Maybe Gran would have told her, that way he wouldn't have to worry anymore. That way he wouldn't have to wait for the right time.

It seemed to Sokka that there really _wasn't_ a right time. Either he told them or he didn't. And for now, he didn't want to tell them. He was scared. He was scared, just like he was known for. '_Jeez, Sokka, you have to toughen up and stop being a baby,' _he thought, his hands curling into fists so hard that his knuckles turned white and his hands shook slightly.

These thoughts all brought him back to when he was only seven years old...

_"Sokka," Gran had called. "Will you come in here with me?" The young boy had agreed and entered his grandmother's small house, even if it were more like a tent. "I have something to tell you, something very important..." she had started when he was situated on the ground._

_"What is it, Gran?" Sokka had probed._

_"Have you ever found that when you get really angry the ground starts to move? Whether it be the entire ground beneath your feet or a rock, or even just some sand shoots up near you?"_

_  
"Yes, Gran, but what does that have to do with anything?"_

_  
"Your sister, Katara, is not your real sister," she had said slowly to the young boy. "We -- as in, the tribe -- found you as a tiny baby and took you in. Attached to your neck was a note that read, 'Please, someone, take this poor Earth Bender baby. We cannot raise him, we wouldn't be good parents.' And so, we took you in -- we couldn't leave you out there to die."_

_  
"So... I - I'm not a Water Bender?" he asked, his voice cracking as tears flowed down his cheeks._

_"No, honey... You're an Earth Bender."_

Sokka gulped, letting his hands relax as he notice that, in his anger, a few rocks had lifted themselves from the ground. He could control his powers, and was now a skilled Earth Bender (he trained at night, when Katara and Aang were asleep), but sometimes when his anger got out of control, his bending powers would kick in, whether he wanted them to or not.

The rocks hit the ground with great strength, sending puffs of dirt in every direction, the noise causing Aang and Katara to turn around. "There must be an Earth Bender around here somewhere!" Aang exclaimed, and Katara smiled. "Maybe he could teach me to be an Eath Bender."

_'Oh, I could teach you alright,' _Sokka thought, sighing, as Katara replied, "Well, let's go look. You coming, Sokka?"

Sokka looked up, his sister's voice piercing through his thoughts. "Oh... Uh, y - yeah, sure, I suppose so."

"Well, you could stay here and protect camp, and see if the Earth Bender comes by," Aang suggested. _'I _am _the Earth Bender,' _Sokka thought, but he just nodded, forcing a smile onto his face. Aang and Katara disappeared behind a corner, and Sokka sighed a sigh of slight relief. He sat on the ground and shut his eyes, opening them after a couple of seconds after he knew that Aang and Katara were gone.

He stood, taking a deep breath. He put his arms at his side, eyes locked on a large boulder that weighed about as much as an elephant. He then closed his eyes for a moment, thinking how he was going to do this. As he opened his eyes, his arms moved quickly and the boulder floated upwards, staying there for a minute before Sokka stomped his foot down and the boulder went flying in the direction of the small stream nearby, a few smaller pebbles flying that way with the force of the stomp as well.

Aang and Katara must have heard the flying boulder land in the stream because they came running as fast as they could in Sokka's direction. "Sokka, Sokka!" Aang cried, panting. "Did you see him? Did you see the Earth Bender?"

"No," Sokka replied simply, closing his eyes for another short second before turning around and walking into the tent that they had put up. "Aang knows that Katara is a Water Bender," Sokka muttered bitterly. "We know that Aang is the Avatar. But what am I? To them, nothing. Only Gran and the Water Tribe elders know who I r_eally_ am."

"Sokka?" Katara said, entering the tent. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine... Just tired is all," Sokka lied, forcing a small smile.

"Oh, okay.." Katara looked towards the ground. "We saw some travelers passing by, they're a part of the Earth Tribe and they're going to take us there tomorrow, so that Aang can learn how to be an Earth Bender too. They said that they're some of the strongest warriors in the Earth Tribe but they're looking for some prophecy kid. We told them that Aang, the Avatar, was here and if they were looking for him, but they said that they were looking for someone that was born an Earth Bender but that was given up at birth so that he wouldn't be killed." She shrugged, then laid down beside Sokka. "Well... Goodnight."

Sokka paled, figuring that they meant him. "G - good night," he stammered, rolling onto his side and shutting his eyes tightly.

**A/N: **Short, I know, but it's just getting started. I hope to make the future chapters longer. Please read and review, this is my first Avatar fanfic!


	2. II

**Just A Piece Of Your Puzzle**

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. And, unfortunately, I never will.

It was morning. The sun's rays shone through the tent's 'door', awakening Sokka from his nightmares. He continually tossed and turned on the cold, hard ground all night, his thoughts plagued by this 'prophecy' Katara had mentioned. Why was he apart of a prophecy? Sure, he didn't want to be the weak one, the one that ran away, the one that everyone saw him as, but a piece of a _prophecy? _Someone to save an entire tribe? That was Aang's job. It was Katara's job to be Aang's sidekick. Sokka? He was the one that got the battle plans, even if they didn't work more than half the time. They had jobs. And all of that was falling apart, and all because he wasn't who everyone thought.

He sat up, just to notice Katara and Aang starting to stir, and three extra sleeping bags rolled up in the corner of the tent. The Earth Benders were already awake. _'Well,' _Sokka thought, _'I'm going to have to face them sooner or later, right? May as well be sooner.' _He took a deep breath, grabbing his boomerang and walking out of the faded green tent. He was right. The Earth Benders were outside, the three of them crowded around a small fire, where a small boar was cooking. Their heads snapped in his direction.

One of them smiled. "Why, hello!" he exclaimed. "I am Gero, one of the Earth Benders. I suppose that your friends told you about us, no?" Gero was a dark haired man, slightly muscular and short with a sword attached to his waist. His hair fell down past his shoulders, wrapped tightly in a braid.

"A little bit," Sokka replied, walking over and sitting on one of the logs with the Earth Benders.

"What did they say?" another asked, this one with short red hair that was cut around his ears, and long, skinny legs that almost reached the fire.

Sokka froze. This made him completely uncomfortable -- he was the person in the prophecy, but nobody knew it. Nobody except the people back at his home. And they couldn't help him now. "Oh, Picco, you made him nervous," Gero scolded slightly.

The long-legged man shrugged. "I tend to do that alot, huh?"

"No, no, it's.. it's okay," Sokka stammered. "They... Well, they told me that you're looking for someone that you abandoned as a baby, some prophecy kid..."

"Ah, yes," Gero mused. He nodded. "He'd be around your age, I believe. You are fifteen, correct?"

"Y-Yes, sir."

"Alrighty, then. He'll be sixteen in a couple of months, I believe."

_'It really _is _me that they're looking for,' _Sokka thought, the color draining from his face. "Well, 'least we know that you don't have any bending powers, so that takes you off our list of possible people," the third one announced, staring into the fire. This third Earth Bender was bald, and shorter than Gero, but even more muscular. A sword and shield was attached to his back.

"Don't be rude, Mako," Gero scolded.

Mako scoffed. "Just telling it like it is." '_You have no idea what it is,' _Sokka thought.

"Hey, guys," Aang called, joining the group, followed by Katara. "Before we leave, can you try to teach me how to bend Earth a little bit? Only for an hour or two, or until the boar is done cooking. Sokka can watch the boar while we work on it," Aang suggested.

"Alright. Let's help the Avatar, then. He may not be the prophecy child but he will save the world, according to legend, not just the Earth Kingdom," Gero agreed, and the other two Earth Benders nodded in agreement. They all stood, walking towards the forest. Once they were out of eyeshot, Sokka brought some more rocks over to the fire, creating a bigger circle, not once getting up from his spot. Little did he know that as he did so, Mako had started coming back for a pouch of stones, and caught Sokka in the act.

------------------------------------

When the rest of the group got back, Sokka was just cutting up the boar. Mako's eyes seemed to be glued on Sokka, never leaving the fifteen-year-old. And it just made Sokka uncomfortable. He squirmed on the rough log, taking slow bites of his boar. When he was finished, Sokka dashed to the tent to pack -- anything to get away from Mako. But Mako followed.

"I know," Mako whispered. "I know your secret."

Sokka stood erect, his face showing obvious fear. "H-how? And... Will... Will you tell them?"

"I saw. And yes... I will have to tell them. We need you."

"How do you know that I am The One?"

"Tell me about you."

"My... my grandmother said that she had found me, abandoned, slightly close to the Earth Kingdom.. As - as a baby."

"Then you are The One."

"I don't _want _to be The One!"

"You have no choice in the matter. Do you think that Aang was begging to be the Avatar? No. He had no choice, he had to accept that it was his destiny. He failed the people once, and now he is trying to make up for that mistake, that a past Avatar had made, in the past. Now pack your things, and I will tell the others about who you are."

"NO!" Sokka shouted. Mako paused. "Not... not yet. Please, just wait a while. A couple of days... It will take us a week or so to get to the Earth Kingdom, a couple of days to prepare me to tell them.. Please," Sokka begged. Mako sighed.

"You have three days. If you don't tell after three days, I will."

"Thank you," Sokka whispered, grabbing the things and walking from the tent.

**A/N: **P Now Mako knows. Now Sokka has three days to tell his sister, the other two Earth Benders, and Aang that he is the one of the prophecy... What do you think so far? Read and review, please! (And yes, I know that this chapter is shorter than the first... Please bear with me here.)


	3. III

**Just A Piece Of Your Puzzle**

The days passed slowly for him, as he neared closer and closer to the day that he knew he would have to tell them. And the fear grew more and more in the pit of his stomach, grasping him, gripping him. It tugged on his heart, pulling, threatening to make him scream and cry and pounding the ground with his fists while having a fit. But no. He was Sokka, the one that was supposed to be collected in the hard times, scared in the easy times, frightened in the really hard times. So what was he to do?

Every night when everyone else was asleep he would shake, using all the power he could muster not to cry, not to bawl right then and there. The shaking was too much as it was. But as Mako saw Sokka bending, he saw Sokka shaking as well. But not once did he feel sorry for the poor boy. The only thoughts that ran through his mind were, '_It's for the best... The kid's gotta learn sooner or later that the Earth Kingdom, and possibly the whole world, is on his shoulders.' _And then he would shake his head, close his eyes, and try to sleep.

It was always Sokka, or so it seemed. Sokka was always the one with the tough times. So what if it was self-inflicted? It was harder for him than it was for Katara or Aang. Katara had Aang _and _Sokka. Aang had Katara, and even though there was alot of bickering between the two, Aang knew that he always could count on Sokka as well. But what about Sokka? Even if Mako knew about him being the Earth Bender, it wasn't like Sokka could go talk to him. And Katara and Aang didn't know about Sokka being an Earth Bender, 'The One', so he couldn't go talk to them. It had always been Gran, she was the one that he turned to in his times of need. And now, because of Aang, she was gone.

'_That stupid Avatar just had to take away the only person that I could count on during my times of need!' _Sokka would think as soon as he found a way to stop shaking, and he would scowl at the dark top of the tent before attempting to sleep again.

And every morning, Sokka would be tired, bags under his eyes and yawning continously. But he would still get up at sunrise, sometimes even before, as it was hard for him to sleep, and try to go about life as 'normal'. Yet every day Sokka found himself thinking, _'What _is _normal? While we were with Gran what normal was was simple, just do the same thing every day, occasionally changing the schedule to fit your needs. But now, I can't seem to get anything right!'_

It was on the day that Sokka was forced to tell them that he was the Earth Bender that Katara realized that Sokka was getting very little sleep, and as he was putting up sticks to make a fire she said to him in a concerned tone, "Sokka, are you okay?"

And to that Sokka had replied in a gruff voice, "I'm fine." She had left the matter alone after that, but did not fail to notice that he had not bothered to put his hair up; it had grown some, pieces of hair falling down his forehead and covering up his eyebrows. One side of his head had his hair tucked behind his ear, while the other side had hair covering half his right ear. The back of his hair fell neatly near the top of his neck, having obviously been combed earlier.

She had wanted to ask, "Why did you not put your hair up?" And yet, she decided against it, figuring it would just bring out an angry response from Sokka, seeing as he didn't make the happiest reply when she asked him if he was okay. And saying, "I'm fine"? "Good" or "great" or even "bad" or "horrible" are words you use when you actually mean it, and what to talk, or aren't entirely upset. But "I'm fine"? That's what you say to people when you don't really want to talk to them, you just want them to leave you alone. To accept that offer and move on.

_'I wonder what's wrong with him,' _Katara thought. '_He's always grumpy this time of day, but not like this.' _She wanted to know so badly, and soon she would. Soon she'd know things that she never knew, things she'd never want to believe. And she'd be angry.

"Sokka?" Aang had asked, an hour after Katara held that two sentenced conversation with him.

"What?" Sokka had barked in reply, his tone annoyed.

"Are you okay? You seem... different this morning."

"Well, I'm fine."

"Actually..." Mako butted in slowly, looking first at Sokka then at Aang. Then he yelled, "I would like everyone to gather around the fire!" Sokka glared at him, but Mako just shrugged it off and whispered to the young Earth Bender, "There's no time like the present." Sokka gave a defeated sigh, sitting down on a log as everyone else did.

"What's all this about?" Katara questioned.

"Packing our bags can wait a couple of minutes, Katara," Gero told her, hearing some of the impatience in her voice. She sighed, nodding.

"It seems that Sokka has something to tell everyone," Mako stated, his eyes staring daggers at Sokka, who was staring into the dancing flames.

"I'manEarthBender," Sokka blurted out so fast that only Mako's and Gero's trained ears could hear him. Not even the other older Earth Bender could understand the words.

"What?" Aang, Katara, and Picco said at the same time.

"He's an Earth Bender," Gero said quietly.

"The One," Mako agreed, his voice not as quiet.

"And why did he not tell us?" Picco demanded. Katara and Aang just sat there, frozen. And all Sokka did was stare at the fire.

"It's not true!" Aang suddenly blurted out. "He's a Water Bender... That can't bend."

The color rushed into Sokka's face, his face turning slightly red with anger as he stood up, his fists clenched. "I can too bend!" he shouted at the Avatar, jaw quivering. His hands moved quickly, and two large rocks floated into the air, zooming right at Aang from behind. Everyone gasped, but just as they were about to hit the Avatar, Sokka sent them flying upwards, then let them rest on the ground near the fire. Then Sokka sat back down, letting his hands relax and taking a deep breath.

"You - you kept this from us!" Katara shouted, her voice cracking as tears rolled down her cheeks. "What other secrets are you hiding from us?"

"None," Sokka said simply. "Unless you consider me being 'adopted' a secret."

"Yeah, I kinda do."

"Well, you know that now too, so it isn't a secret anymore."

"Why wouldn't -- why didn't... why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you tell_ us_?" As she said 'us', her finger pointed at herself then at Aang.

"First, Gran said she would tell you. Second, when was I supposed to do it? Had I done it any other time the result would have been like this, maybe even worse!"

"And how do you know that?"

"You're my sister, Katara. I know you."

Katara was silent. She knew that he was adopted now... And he had still called her his sister? "You know that we aren't real siblings, right?" she asked softly, staring at the ground.

"We have been forever, Katara... Why should it change now?"

"I just.. And..." Katara mentally slapped herself. '_Speak in complete sentences!' _she commanded herself, then said aloud, "You were adopted.."

"Yeah."

"Wow."

"It's not as big a deal as you make it, Katara."

The other three Earth Benders had no choice but to just watch the interaction between the two siblings, trying to speak in between replies but failing each time. But as soon as there was a pause, Gero said, "Shall we resume packing?" And everyone nodded, going straight to what they were supposed to be packing.

**A/n: **Yeah, I know it's kinda short again but it's the only way I can get these chapters up... I tried to do it longer today but I ended up having to erase a couple of paragraphs at the end because when I made it longer it just didn't sound right when I read it. So anyway, enjoy!


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